Ruby
“You’re late,” Danny remarked with a disappointed tone as I entered through the back door of the restaurant.
I let out a sigh, glancing at my watch, to discover that I was twenty minutes behind schedule. It was a rare occurrence for me, as I usually prided myself on being punctual and composed, regardless of the challenges life threw my way.
“Yeah, I’m sorry. I had some issues to settle,” I replied, the dryness in my voice reflecting the tension I carried. I reached for the blue net on the table, draping it over my hair.
Danny looked at me with a touch of sadness in her eyes. “It’s so unlike you; do you maybe want to talk about it?”
“I’d rather not,” I replied flatly, and I winced at the harshness in my tone.
“I’m sorry; I’m just not in the mood to talk about it.”
“I understand, dear… Well, better late than never, then,” she said, handing me an apron.
I mustered a thankful smile, appreciating her understanding as I prepared myself for the challenges of the day ahead. The restaurant buzzed with activity, with the clinking of utensils and distant chatter creating a vibrant backdrop to the unfolding day.
I had been working here for seven years, as no one else seemed willing to hire a pitiful woman. Despite my occasional tardiness, Danny consistently showed kindness that softened the edges of my shortcomings.
However, I couldn’t shake the feeling that her kindness was tied to her being my grandmother’s friend; otherwise, I might have been let go a long time ago, and I wouldn’t have blamed her. No one wants a woman who frowns all day, serving food and taking orders, potentially driving customers away.
And it had affected Danny’s business drastically, yet she decided to keep me even when I had told her several times that I could find something else to do, but she insisted on keeping me. We were the only three people who ran the restaurant, which included Danny, the owner, me, Draco, who was the cook, and her son.
Throughout these years, this restaurant has become my sanctuary, diverting my attention from unwelcome thoughts, and during my free time, I sat with my grandmother to learn the secret recipe of her medicine.
Just as I finished tying the apron around my waist, I overheard a customer impatiently saying, “How long am I going to wait before someone takes my order?” The voice of a man screamed, and quickly, I rushed to their side, putting on a fake smile on my face.
“About time, you showed up.” The woman scoffed, exchanging an eye-roll with the man by her side, who was shamelessly checking me out head to toe.
Disgust filled my whole body as I felt his hard gaze staring at my breast, and then he noticed I caught him checking me out and winked at me.
“I apologise for the delay. How may I assist you today?” I responded, trying to maintain a professional demeanour and avoiding eye contact with the man.
“Just get us the menu and make it quick mutt. We don’t have all day,” the woman demanded, her tone condescending.
Feeling the sting of humiliation, I forced a tight-lipped smile and nodded, suppressing any visible reaction to their rudeness as I retrieved the menu for the rude woman.
After seven years, I was used to the likes of them with higher rank looking down on omegas like me who lived their lives from hand to mouth and were also perverts who had no shame.
However, before I could hand it over, she abruptly threw it in my face, and this time I couldn’t hide my shock.
I fought to keep my composure, knowing that a confrontation might hurt Danny’s business. Despite the hurt, I calmly reminded the woman.
“Ma’am, you haven’t placed your order yet.”
“Are you blind? Can’t you read the book and see that I have marked what I want? Get me a large burger and two fries now.”
Her insult cut deep, and I looked to see that the paper was marked with her claws. Biting back tears, I picked up the menu from the floor, determined to fulfil my duties.
I wouldn’t let her ruin my already bad day, so I rushed to the kitchen and tried to shake off the encounter, focusing on the responsibilities at hand while the weight of their rudeness lingered.
In a minute, the food was ready, and I approached the table carrying it gently, even though I could still feel the woman’s condescending gaze on me as she tried to show me her superiority.
I could tell she was a gamma daughter, which also meant she was gamma, and right now she has a higher rank than I do, as my power and aura have been lost, so going against her will be foolishness on my part.
My heart sank as she smirked, clearly enjoying the discomfort she had caused earlier, and she grinned when she noticed she had succeeded in putting fear in my soul.
“Finally! It took you long enough,” she scoffed, her tone dripping with disdain. Taking a deep breath, I managed a forced smile, suppressing the frustration bubbling within.
“Here’s your order. If you need anything else, feel free to ask,” I said, attempting to maintain a bit of professionalism. The woman rolled her eyes, dismissing my words with a wave of her hand.
“Just leave.”
I turned on my heel, letting out a sigh of relief and concealing my anger. Just as I was about to head to the kitchen, I heard her high-pitched scream.
“You ugly, disgusting bitch, why does this food have hair? You bitch, are you trying to kill me?”
I slowly turned back to see her face all red and angry, and I shifted my gaze to the man by herself to see him smirk and touch his hair.
Damn, he did this. He intentionally put his hair into her food, knowing she would blame me. The surge of anger mixed with helplessness welled up inside me.
“I am sure there’s a mistake somewhere, but rest assured that I will get you another if you don’t want this.” I politely said.
“You want me to waste my money twice, you low-ranking omega? My money for this meal can feed you and your bastard son for a whole year, so you better respect yourself if you don’t want to live on the street.” She yelled, her eyes shooting daggers my way.
“What’s going on here ruby?” Danny’s voice called from behind.